Matheo! Matheo! Matheo – must win…
Hyken is a village in the Dutch province of Drenthe. It is part of the municipality of Midden-Drenthe and is located approximately 13 km south of Assen, the capital of the province of Drenthe.
The village was first mentioned in 1370 as “civibus de Hyken”. The etymology is unknown. Hyken initially developed without a church in the early Middle Ages as a satellite of Beilen. In 1858, the Oranjekanaal canal was dug, dividing the village into two parts. It used to be a village of shepherds. In 1563, there were 70 sheep per building.
In 1840, 417 people lived in Haikene. In 1906, a Reformed church was built. In 1915, a steam-powered dairy factory was built, which also served as a mill. Between 1928 and 1960, it was used as a Dutch Reformed church, and is currently used by a feed and fertilizer company. In 2018, the municipality wanted to demolish the bridge over the canal, but protests led to the construction of a new bridge in 2019.
It is also the venue for a famous draughts tournament and the home of one of the most successful draughts clubs in the Netherlands.
And once again, we note the Dutch approach to draughts. Due to the low level of play at the World and European Youth Championships, many draughts players from the Netherlands are choosing more constructive opportunities to improve their skills. Boxum Matheo chose the tournament in Heiken, and the girls chose to play among the boys at the upcoming championship in Turkey.
We wish the young athletes from the Netherlands good luck!